Beaumont attorney Brent Coon has filed a class-action lawsuit for his client, Elaine Henderson, and 8,000 like her who own a 1.5-story home and had their home values increased across the Texas county.
Coon said Henderson’s home increased more than $40,000 in a single year, and she’s past the point of a formal protest to the Jefferson County Appraisal District (JCAD).
“This similar mechanism was applied wholesale to 8,000 others,” Coon told The Port Arthur News. “We hoped to engage in an informal process with the Jefferson County Appraisal District Board of Directors. The next level is court.”
The key witness in the proceedings is JCAD Chief Appraiser Angela Bellard.
“Last year there was a change in the way appraisals are done,” Coon said.
Coon said there has also been some “push-back” from JCAD employees. He classified them as whistleblowers, saying they told him the appraisals are being done as drive-byes and resales.